CAR fighting leaves at least 60 dead

BANGUI – Troops in the Central African Republic battled fighters loyal to ousted President Francois Bozize on Monday on the second day of clashes that have killed at least 60 people, one of the deadliest outbreaks since a March coup.

The fighting erupted Sunday near Bossangoa, some 250 km north of the capital, Bangui, in the home region of Bozize, who ruled the troubled nation for 10 years until his overthrow six months ago.

Militiamen described as Bozize loyalists infiltrated villages around Bossangoa destroying bridges and other infrastructure and “taking revenge against the Muslim population,” the presidency’s spokesman, Guy-Simplice Kodegue, said.

“At least 60 people were killed in these attacks,” he said, without elaborating on the casualties.

Michel Djotodia, the man whose Seleka rebel group ousted Bozize in March, was sworn in last month as the Christian-majority Central African Republic’s first Muslim president.